I don't really boil my spinach, either - I just dunk it in a pot of boiling water and take it out as soon as the stems start to soften. I like some life in my veggies.

Dammit, AP, now I'm gonna have to go buy shrimp. I haven't eaten seafood in ages!

In other culinary news, I now know how to make Chinese stuffed steamed buns! They're not dorm-friendly, but I'll be making them all the time when I get home. They're really nice to have, actually - they're even easier to make than dumplings, and they can be made in large batches and kept for a couple days. The key is to add oil to the water when you steam them so they don't stick to everything. I love them with lots of shiitake mushrooms, black fungus, cabbage and ginger. I already knew how to make dumplings when I came here, but now I can make the wrappers, too! It's a little annoying, but if you have one person making the wrappers and one person wrapping the dumplings it works out pretty well. You can make a meal's worth in less than the amount of time it takes to bring the water to a boil. It's a fun way to feast with friends, too - you all just sit around chatting and wrapping dumplings and every so often someone grabs a batch and boils them up to eat.

You guys suck-diddley-uck! I try not to think of all the wonderful food I am missing out on by living in the sticks, but you don't make it easy! I like to cook, yes, but damn. I can't get the flours to make proper injera or pakora here. I whip up the odd dish, but it's just not the same without the ambiance.

I really do not much care for my spinach to be boiled, I lightly steam it & add the gomaae. Spinach always seems too delicate to me for boiling, perhaps it's because I grew up eating tougher greens like collards & mustards boiled & my spinach from a can (Ptoo ptoo!). Ugh. I shudder to recall.

Oh, I love palak paneer. I'm looking forward to having lots of it when I get home - the Indian restaurant that just opened by my mom's place does a really nice one. And that Ethiopian spinach stew, is that the one that they serve on the big pancake? I love that stuff, such comfort food. As for my gomaae, I do prefer to eat it chilled - it's just so refreshing! Although it's good warm, too. It'd be easier to make warm gomaae, actually, because you could just skip the cold rinse and throw it straight into the bowl.

Good to know I won't be poisoned by my excessive spinach consumption, AP. I've also heard conflicting things about spinach and nutrient absorption. Whatever. I'll just keep eating it and let the scientists figure that out!

I was under the impression that cooked spinach doesn't have the same amount of oxalic acid in it.

See, that's what I thought, Ketto, so I looked it up & couldn't seem to find a solid answer either way. It seems that our bodies use the high quantities of nutrients found in spinach better if the spinach is raw or only lightly cooked, though.

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"You're cute, like a velvet glove cast in iron. And like a gas chamber, a real fun gal."

I was under the impression that cooked spinach doesn't have the same amount of oxalic acid in it. I know that when I eat raw spinach my mouth gets very dry and I don't produce enough saliva but I've never had it happen with cooked spinach.

I love spinach. Has anyone ever made palak paneer? This is by far my favourite indian dish and lately I've been wanting to try and whip it up at home. My other favourite spinach dish is an ethiopian stew. I've never been a fan of gomaae because it's always been served cold and I find that very unappealing. Do you eat it warm, epi? I might have to try that.

On spinach poisoning, I do know spinach has a lot of oxalic acid in it, which can be harmful. But, uh, you'd have to eat a LOT of it. Like pounds. And it can contribute to kidney stones & gout if you're prone. So you should be okay!

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"You're cute, like a velvet glove cast in iron. And like a gas chamber, a real fun gal."

Spinach is in season, and at a tenth of what it would cost me in the west, I'm going spinach-crazy over here. I just polished off my second big bowl of gomaae for the night, and I can see myself eating at least this much on a daily basis for the forseeable future. I wonder if it's possible to get spinach poisoning. What is it about a bunch of soggy boiled sesame-flavoured leaves that's so damn satisfying? I whipped up the gomaae on a whim with what I had on hand, probably not very authentic, but in a pinch it worked like a hot damn and satisfied my craving beautifully. I just took a teaspoon of ground black sesame (which I'd originally bought to make black sesame pudding), a couple drops of sesame oil, half a teaspoon of light soy sauce, a pinch of sugar and a tablespoon of water and mixed them together in my bowl, and then I just threw 1/2 cup cooked spinach in and tossed it a bit. I'm so happy right now - I found something dorm-friendly that I can cook that I actually want to eat!

Flavor injectors? What do we think? Useful or pointless? I sometimes make a compound butter to push under the skin, but I am curious about straight up injection.

Fuck pie crusts. I give up! Buying them is just fine.

It has been my winter of savory pies. They are just so easy & so yummy & they stretch a looooong way! Beef/poultry pies I make with a Yukon mashed potato top & serve with a big-ass side salad, fish pies with both crusts served over a pile of garlic mashed baby reds.

I've been roasting anything that comes within a foot of me, which is odd because I usually do a lot of soups this time of year. Roasted fish, chicken, steak, & pretty much every veg I stumble across. Mmmmm . . . crispy kale!

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"You're cute, like a velvet glove cast in iron. And like a gas chamber, a real fun gal."

Slice the onion and slowly caramelize in a frying pan with the olive oil and a pinch of salt. I cheat a little by adding some water to the pan when the onion just starts cooking, that way the onion gets soft before it starts to brown.

Once the onion is caramelized, add it to a bowl (or food processor) with the silken tofu, lemon juice, remaining salt, sesame oil, and hot pepper flakes. I'd like to note that the salt and lemon juice measurements are approximates because I just kept adding until the taste was right.

Blend until everything is combined, and retains a slightly chunky texture (I used my immersion blender).

Chill the dip for at least an hour, to let flavours meld. Eat with sliced vegetables, crackers, potato chips, as a tasty sandwich spread, or anywhere else non-vegan onion dip is used. (This makes a PARTY sized amount of dip, so I ended up using the leftovers making dairy free clam chowder!)

I am insane. I didn't think I was going to have New Years company, so I pretty much figured I'd have a boring solo sitch. Tonight I find out HB may or may not be here depending upon the weather. So I am up in the middle of the night trying to come up with some kind of fancy dinner that I can whip together tomorrow.

Somehow the local market got in a bunch of good seafood (frozen, of course) so I think I've settled on shrimp/cheese in a delicate pastry, oyster soup, crab/tomato salad, & a lobster potpie with asparagus/gold taters/mushrooms/leeks. I will probably slack on dessert, I was considering maybe a chardonnay gelee with berries or something. We'll probably have strata or a fritatta for brunch as I am lazy.

Anybody else have any ideas? What are you cooking for the eve or perhaps brunch?

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"You're cute, like a velvet glove cast in iron. And like a gas chamber, a real fun gal."

I'd throw it into the slow cooker on low with six cups water, a few chopped celery stalks, a few chopped carrots, a quartered onion, a bit o' garlic, & a bay leaf. Leave it be for 8-10 hours occasionally scooping off the scum. When it's done, strain out the bone/veg, stick it into the fridge & scoop off the fat when it's cold. After that you could make a Somma Borscht (We have a strong local Mennonite community here & it's tater/mixed green soup. Delicious!) any one of a scrillion bean soups.

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"You're cute, like a velvet glove cast in iron. And like a gas chamber, a real fun gal."

does anyone have any recipes for what i can do with a humongous ham bone, besides pea soup? no one here will eat it (it's referred to as "yoda barf"). bean soup is not well received, either. any ideas?

You went to school where you were taught to fear and to obey, be cheerful, fit in, or someone might think you're weird.Life can be perfect. People can be trusted. Someday, I will fall in love; a nice quiet home of my very own.Free from all the pain. Happy and having fun all the time.It never happened, did it?